Mykola & Artur, County Sligo, Ireland

In July, we attended a Community Integration Summer Adventure Camp in Sligo, Ireland as part of the Communities Integration Fund in Ireland to support communities and new arrivals to come together.

We arrived in Ireland from Ukraine some months ago and saw the opportunity to sign up to take part in the integration camp. The aim of the camp was to give young people from Sligo based communities the opportunity to come together, learn some new outdoor based skills and meet some new people along the way.

We learned how to orienteer and completed various orienteering challenges in groups. We visited one of the local trails and did a lovely hill walk and some yoga in the sun at the top of the walk. We did some bushcrafting and learned how to build our own fire to toast some marshmallows and relax with a cup of hot chocolate! On the last day the sun started to shine in time for our hike up and over Knocknarea, one of Sligo’s famous mountains, to see the stunning views at the top and learn about the local folklore of Queen Maeve’s Grave at the top.

‘I heard about the opportunity from friends so I thought I it would be a good way to spend my time. It was interesting to do different tasks and go on the hike and especially roast marshmallows. I learned lots of new skills and met new people in the community.’ – Artur, 14

‘I really liked cycling the most and learning bushcraft skills. I would really recommend other young people to get involved with Community Integration events as it a great way to get to know the local area and people.’ – Mykola, 14